GM to Invest $2.2 Billion in Detroit Plant to Produce Electric Cars

General Motors (GM) will invest $2.2 billion to produce electric and self-driving cars at its Detroit-Hamtramck plant in Michigan, the company announced Monday.

The press release read:

General Motors’ (NYSE: GM) vision of an all-electric future is coming into clearer focus and gaining momentum with a $2.2 billion investment at its Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant to produce a variety of all-electric trucks and SUVs. GM’s first all-electric truck will be a pickup with production scheduled to begin in late 2021.

This will be followed soon after by the Cruise Origin, a shared, electric, self-driving vehicle unveiled by Cruise in San Francisco last week. Detroit-Hamtramck will be GM’s first fully-dedicated electric vehicle assembly plant.

The company said the investment will create more than 2,200 “good-paying U.S. manufacturing jobs.”

However, between now and February 28 when the plant’s transformation is slated to begin, an estimated 800 hourly workers could be laid off or transferred, according to the Detroit Free Press.

“Union leaders have set up informational meetings with members to discuss their futures starting Tuesday,” the report said.

Following a 40-day bargaining strike to get a better contract with GM, union workers finally reached a deal at the end of October, according to Breitbart News.

The report continued:

As part of the negotiation, about 930 American workers — all of whom have worked as temporary workers for GM but are UAW members — have been provided with full-time jobs at the automaker. With that full-time employment comes a $6 to $9 an hour wage hike for those workers, better health benefits that will now include dental and vision coverage, and perks like tuition assistance.

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American workers at GM’s plants in Flint, Michigan; Lansing, Michigan; and Bedford, Indiana, are among those who have secured full-time employment thanks to last year’s UAW strike.